The La Casera Company, a leading soft drinks firm in the country has relaunched its eponymous Apple drink – La Casera Apple drink, a favourite among the youths.

The reintroduction of the brand received endorsements from the regulatory agencies including the National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), as well as from the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), distributors and consumers at the event which held at the Oriental Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos on Friday.

According to the company, the new drink contains more Apple juice than before, combined with refreshing and rejuvenating taste, which would enable the company gain more market share.

Speaking at the event, the Managing Director, La Casera Company (TLCC), Mr. Roland Ebelt, said the launch of the repackaged La Casera Apple drink is a display of the company’s innovative, forward-thinking prowess and commitment to consumer’s satisfaction.

“La Casera Apple drink now wears a new colourful and attractive look with real apple fruit indicating an increase in real apple juice content in each bottle giving consumers more taste of real apple bite.

“It is good to say that the all new La Casera Apple drink, which still comes in 50cl bottle, developed to meet the thirst need of the average Nigerian who is always on the go, still remains the standard and quality which La Casera is known for and also stands for,” he explained.

Also commenting at the unveiling of the repackaged drink, the Marketing Manager, TLCC, Mr. Bello Yusuf, said the relaunch is a deliberate attempt to become the leader in the CSD market after overcoming challenging times in its business operations.

“Sixteen years down the line, the dynamics of the CSD market is not the same. Today, we have come to witness the rebirth of our flagship brand La Casera Apple drink.

“The La Casera Company has the vision of providing innovative, original, nutritional products to its consumers through their brand, La Casera Apple drink”, he said.

The reintroduction of the brand has long been anticipated by industry watchers following the turbulent period the company experienced in the last two years. In 2015, the firm was forced to shut down its operations following attempts by the management to prevent its employees from joining a union. It led to the sacking of hundreds of  workers, shutting down of its operations and eventual court injunctions against the company. As if that was not enough disruption to the company’s business, rumours began to circulate that the company’s drink were unhealthy for human consumption as it was alleged to contain chemical substance not good for humans.

The company hired a new management in 2016, upgraded its plant and begun the process of emerging from the nightmare it found itself in. It is repackaging, repositioning its flagship brand and have adopted an aggressive marketing strategy to regain the trust of consumers.

To remove any doubts that the drink is healthy for human consumption, it received endorsements from the regulatory agencies (NAFDAC and SON) as well as the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) who all were invited to the event.

Kenneth Azikiwe, who represented the Director General, NAFDAC said, the product has gone through the rigorous processes and has been found to be of high quality and good for consumers.

“On behalf of my DG, I thank the management of La Casera for coming up with another product; NAFDAC number is attached to the label and I want every Nigerians to drink and when you do, drink comfortable because NAFDAC has a stamp on it, it is NAFDAC approved”, he said.

His counterpart, Mrs. Helen Emordi, representative of the Director General, SON, concurred in a statement she made that the product is safe and of quality standard.

“SON has ensured that the product conforms to the requirement of standards”, she stated.

Also putting his weight behind the brand was a Director at MAN, Mr. Joseph Emoleke, who commended the company for the innovative product. He called for more innovative products to make the industry thrive.

“La Casera is one of those companies that are so dear to us and we know you will continue to excel. On behalf of the president, DG, and the National Council of MAN, we felicitate with you. We know you will continue to improve your quality. We are solidly behind you”, Emoleke said.

The La Casera Company entered the Nigerian CSD market in 2001 with the introduction of its flagship brand – La Casera Apple drink. The company was the first beverage firm to package their drinks in PET bottles. Since then, it has introduced many other brands ranging from table water, tonic water, smoov chapman, among others.